WIPP report: LANL procedures to blame for WIPP mishap

CARLSBAD >> A new report released Thursday finds that the radiological release that occurred at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant last year could have been prevented — just not at WIPP.

The Accident Investigation Board Phase II Report, is the second of two reports released by the Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management.

The report identified a deficiency in management system at Los Alamos National Laboratory as the root cause of radiation leak on Feb. 14, 2014.

The radiation leak at WIPP caused 22 workers to be exposed to a low level of radiation and forced the facility to be shutdown, which it has been recovering from since then.

LANL failed to "adequately developed and implemented repackaging and treatment procedures that incorporated suitable hazard controls and included a rigourous review and approval process," the AIB report said.

The AIB report concluded that if such a process had been developed, then the improper packaging of materials would not have occurred, therefore the radiation release at WIPP would not have occurred.

If the National Transuranic Program or Carlsbad Field Office ensured that correct treatment and characterization of the waste was done, then the exposure could have been prevented.

The AIB report concluded once again the improper mixing of organic materials, Swheat Scoop kitty litter, with nitrate salts in one drum that was processed at LANL was the cause of a radiological release at WIPP.

A Technical Assessment Team had already released a report about a month ago and it also showed that a bad combination of nitrate salts and kitty litter caused the nuclear drum breach at WIPP.

The report stated that there was a systematic failure to implement the proper oversight and procedures at LANL.

"Weaknessess in Los Alamos National Security, LLC...programs and waste operations were not identified and corrected which allowed an ignitable noncompliant nitrate salt-bearing waste to be generated, shipped and placed at WIPP," the report states.

The AIB report also concluded that the underground salt haul truck fire that occurred nine days before the release, was not a contributing factor to the radiological release.

Conclusions from the report were found based on chemical, radiological and fire forensic analyses, according to a news release.

The Accident Investigation Board was appointed on March 4, 2014 by Matthew Moury, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Safety, Security, and Quality Programs to investigate the events at WIPP.

Underground access was restricted following the event, thus the investigation was broken into two phases.

A joint statement from U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Reps. Steve Pearce and Ben Ray Luján was released Thrusday in response to the AIB report.

"A series of critical failures of leadership at every level led to the very serious accident and release that put numerous New Mexicans at risk, shuttered WIPP for over a year, and have already cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars," the statement said.

Members from the Accident Investigation Board met with the public at a special WIPP town hall Thursday night to better discuss and explain its contents.

However, the information and detailed information from this meeting was not available by the press deadline.